I have been feeling ill for some time now, always tired lots of abdominal pain and stomach issues.
I had a blood test around Christmas that showed an egfr of 60 I then had subsequent blood tests that showed this progressively improving to the mid 70s and eventually up to 87 I have had a recent test that has dropped down to 70 again and creatinine is back up over 120 from around 100 last blood test.
My doctor has said no further action needed and its normal however I don't think this is correct I have also recently been feeling really unwell and have various symptoms like bells palsy which only seems to be getting worse.
Any help and advice is appreciated
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Youngandscared
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Sounds to me like you need a complete physical including cbc. I diagnosed with ckd in March 21 after proteinuria found by pcp, then on to nephrologist, two of those covid 19 phone sessions but he did order blood work and kidney ultra sound and on that basis found my egfr to be 60, then over the phone said I will see you in September and hung up. Such is medical care in 2021, So I made appt with Cleveland Clinic and was seen face to face with nephrologist who wants more lab work. Have also retained a dietician, who knew that a bowl of cornflakes would drive your blood sugar over 300, not me. So am cutting back on carbs, but fats and protein probably not helping my coronary artery disease one bit. Pick you poison. So I am losing a little weight but bmi still about 25.5 so a little early to worry about that. Carbs are down, everything else up. Can't wait for my next egfr.
Thanks for the reply, I have had a fairly decent set of tests done in the last 6 months that have shown slightly fatty liver, high platelets and high thyroid at points however all except kidney returns to normal range at the next test and as soon as its normal they don't retest. I had ultrasound which said all was ok with kidneys and checked urine all was good too. I just don't know whats going on with me but I feel awful all the time. I'm just over 30 and only weigh 148lbs.
Even the kidney function had been climbing consistently right up to 87 and I thought this time I would be well over the 90 for the normal range following the increases I had been seeing in the months prior and it was so disappointing to see a 17 drop on egfr and increase of 20 in creatinine over 2 months.
Hopefully when you go back on you will see an increase and you are well on the way to recovery and hopefully mine was a momentary blip in what was other wise looking like it was getting better.
I'm reading a lot of numbers for GFR, but what about serumCreatinine, Blood Uren Nitrogen (B.U.N.), and Albumin to Creatinine Ratio (ACR)? GFR is only a snapshot of the lab time and does fluctuate. The other tests will help the physician determine where you are overall with CKD. If you would like any additional information on lab tests please use labtestsonline.org and then click on TESTS. Enter the name of each test and you'll get a lot of information on each one in simple to understand language. It gives you the opportunity to ask pertinent questions when you meet with the physician. Don't let the doctor answer in medical jargon. Ask for lay terms and don't leave or hang up until you understand.Best of luck.
Creatinine had been higher than normal then was reducing until it was in normal range but the last test it went high again. All other kidney blood tests have been fine right in the centre of the reference ranges including bun. The creatinine test result said it should be below 102 i had 125 at first and this went down to 99 progressively however suddenly jumped back to 120.
I had my urine tested too and no blood or protein when at the doctors, I even went a bit ocd and got some dip sticks and tested my self most days for a few months and I have never seen any protein or glucose show up but have seen occasional trace blood but only twice.
After the last blood test they decided to do another one to see if it was an anomaly as this goes against the positive way I was going. I should get the results back Tuesday and hopefully it is good news and back to normal ish again now.
I did have a cold during the last blood test and 3 weeks before I was given an mri with contrast for the bells palsey to make sure it wasn't a tumour due to severity ( stage 4 of 5). I have read that can also affect kidney function.
Thanks again for the reply and useful information it is really appreciated.
In addition to what Mr Kidney has said, be sure you’re drinking plenty of water daily. No dark colas (eg, Coke, Pepsi), eat a healthy diet (lots of veggies and fruit and no processed foods). Also boneless skinless chicken breasts and fish for protein. Eat red meat in moderation. Low sodium and low fat as well as moderation with carbs. In other quests, a heart and liver healthy diet. And lots and lots of water.
Also be careful when using over the counter drugs. Many are not good for kidneys, eg, Motrin.
And finally, your primary care physician is likely critical with your care at this point. I’d set an appointment with your PCP and talk this over in detail. Ask for regular monitoring labs and help understanding your labs, etc. You might also ask for a referral to a dietician to be sure you are eating well for both your liver snd your kidneys.
I have been drinking a lot more water and eating really healthy for about 6 months now I have lost just over 25lbs and cut out all processed foods and eating out. It was rewarding seeing the egfr return to almost normal as I lost weight and ate healthier but the last test was like a punch in the gut as I was sure I would be back in the normal range for everything and it was a complete shock.
However thinking about it now as I said above I had a fairly severe cold and Mri with contrast just before the last test which I hope explains the result and I hope I will see it keep climbing again.
I was given a lot of antibiotics a while back for a persistent infection in my ear but other than that I never take any medication.
I think my doctor is busy following covid and I have difficulty getting appointments although I do believe they are trying their best.
So sorry to hear that you not well. I too had Bells Palsy which recovered fully. Dr thought it might be due to my high BP. Have you checked your BP? Lower kidney functioning can impact BP. I am now on BP meds
I have had it tested a few times, I don't like doctors and it reads high on the machine at first then they check it again and it normally comes back to normal but one time they had to dig out and old machine and take it manually which it was normal at that point. I can't help it I just tense up when doctor comes near after surgery while awake that went a bit wrong 15 years ago.
They think the bells palsey is from a virus and did an mri with contrast to check for anything more serious which the results were cryptic one line stating no malignancy was found which I assume means nothing was found i have a follow up soon which hasn't been rushed so hopefully says there isn't anything to worry about head and neck wise.
I have feeling back in most of my face now and just bottom lip and one side of my nose don't move at all so I hope I get full recovery like yourself its been about 2 months so far since it started.
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Any Advice?
Advice for someone with possible CKD
Lowering eGFR and creatine
Colds, granchildren, eGFR
My egfr dropped from 89 to 53 in 10 days.
